Everyone who hears these words of Mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. Matthew 7:24-25

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Monday, August 20, 2012

Can you believe we are nearing the end of August? You know what that means.

School!!

Ty started 3rd grade here at Arrow Academy last week. Wow! Third grade! That’s hard for me to believe. So far it’s been smooth sailing. Both teacher and student have had positive attitudes, and we have enjoyed getting back into the swing of things.

Once again, I am using the A Beka curriculum with Ty. (More on why I chose this here)

For the most party, Ty’s lessons have been review of previously covered material:

In Arithmetic: He’s working on addition and subtraction to the 1,000’s place with carrying and borrowing; Multiplication – the 0’s, 1’s, & 2’s tables; Labeling the parts of arithmetic problems (addends, sums, minuends, products, etc.); telling time to the nearest 5 minutes; linear measurements; and story problems.

In Language: Definition of a sentence; Types of sentences – declarative, interrogative, exclamatory; Capitalization and Punctuation.

In Science: The nervous system and the Senses – he’s learning the parts of the eyes and ears this week.

Penmanship: Review of all cursive letters – capital and lower case. This year he’s learning to write 3/4 space. I wondered how he was going to do with having to write so small, but I think it’s actually a bit easier for him.

One new thing we are doing this year is a calendar notebook containing materials that I downloaded from one of my favorite homeschooling websites. Each morning Ty takes his notebook and completes calendar-related worksheets that reinforce the days of the week, months of the year, math facts, place value, color and shape words, sight words, and the fifty states – map, abbreviations, and capitals. The last activity in his notebook is a daily doodle – it’s just a fun, random, step-by-step drawing for him to do. Last week he drew Dr. Seuss characters.

I also ordered a supplemental art book along with his regular curriculum this year. The book includes about 5 simple art projects to complete each month. Today, Ty did his first art project – Pinprick Art. Lucy joined in the fun too. She couldn’t wait to do the “part roject,” as she called it.

First Ty had to draw a simple picture on colored paper. He chose Angry Birds as his subject matter of course.

Next, he had to use a push pin to poke holes all along his line drawing.

Lucy watched big brother do it, then she gave it a try.

She drew a “fish” and went to work poking holes. Lucy was quite adroit at using the push pins.

These two monkeys had a blast with this simple little project. Ty even confessed that art was his favorite subject in school… aside from recess, of course. They were so proud of the finished products. They could hardly wait for Daddy to get home so they could show off their work.

You may have noticed the star in the center of Ty’s forehead. He got that for making a 100 on his first trial spelling test. All eighteen words correct. Way to go, Ty! Who knew that a sticker on the forehead would be such an incentive for him. It’s amazing the work I can get outta that boy if there’s a possibility of getting a sticker on his head! Ha ha. Wished I had thought of this a couple of years ago.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Today I wanted to share a few pictures from Lucy’s third birthday party. I admit, it’s getting increasingly difficult for me to carve out the time and muster up the energy to plan and prepare for birthday parties. But I enjoy the whole creative process far too much to settle for cake and ice cream at everyone’s favorite pizza joint.

After a little deliberation this year, Lucy decided that she wanted a princess party. And being the girly girl that she is, Lucy requested all things pink! I was tickled (pink) with her choice, because I knew just how I wanted to decorate – lacey, ruffly, and a little bit shabby. And not a Disney princess in sight! (Not that I have anything against Cinderella and her cohorts, I just don’t prefer to have their likenesses on my plates and napkins.)

Most of the decorations were items that I already owned. I just went through the house one day “shopping” for feminine looking items.

One of my all-time favorite party decoration is tissue paper flowers. You can make such a big impact with these things for practically pennies. After the party, I plan to use these in Lucy’s room.

I spruced up these simple glass candle holders with a strip of burlap, a scrap of lace trim, and an old button. Easy, peasy.

For some reason, Lucy decided that she had to hand Uncle Jude each gift as soon as she opened it.

Every. Single. Gift.

Straight to Uncle Jude.

Thanks, Uncle Jude. You did a great job!

Daddy had to help Lucy try out her dance-with-me doll…

Time for cake! Of course, Lucy loved it because it was pink.

As soon as we set the cake down in front of her, Lucy went straight for the crown. Yep, that’s my hand reaching in to rescue the crown. We still had pictures to take!

Crazy brother! That Ty is such a little joker, just like his dad.

Make a wish, sweet girl.

Last year I bought Lucy these great Do-a-Dot paints for birthday. This year I gave her some Do-a-Dot paint books. She had a blast painting in the princess book. It’s amazing to see how much Lucy’s fine motor skills have progressed over the past year. She’s growing and learning so fast. In only a couple of weeks, Lucy will be starting PreK at our church. She’s a little apprehensive of it now, but I know she will enjoy it once she gets used to it.

Hey Y'all

Welcome! I'm Lindsey, a SAHM of 3 precious monkeys. I'm married to the REAL Tool Man, and together, we are trying everyday to build our home on the Rock that is Jesus Christ. I'm so glad you dropped in, and I hope you enjoy reading about my kids, my crafts, and my cakes. Click on my photo to read more.